Fitwel Announces an 80% increase in Certifications in One Year, Showing a Surging Trend in Building for Health
Business Wire 14-Feb-2019 9:00 AM
The Center for Active Design, operator of Fitwel, Recognizes 17
Industry Leaders Advancing Best in Building Health
The Center for Active Design (CfAD) announces a sharp uptick in the
application of the Fitwel Certification System, with an 80%
increase in projects achieving certification between 2017 and 2018.
Today, CfAD recognizes exceptional real estate, design, and consulting
companies for their unique achievements in leading the industry towards
building health.
"We see Fitwel's rapid adoption as a response to the growing demand for
healthy buildings and places, spanning from individuals, and employers,
to institutional investors in real estate," said Joanna Frank,
president & CEO at CfAD. "We are committed to supporting
industry-wide adoption—from existing buildings to new construction; from
commercial and residential properties to affordable housing. We are
proud of our partnership with Fannie Mae's Healthy Housing RewardsTM,
which provides affordable housing developers a financial incentive to
prioritize health by applying Fitwel."
Fitwel Certification System by the numbers: 650+ registered projects,
impacting 570,000+ people, with 180+ projects certified or pending
certification, 1,600+ global users and 1,000+ Fitwel Ambassadors,
spanning 35+ countries. 42% of certified projects received a 1 Star
Rating, which requires a minimum score of 90 out of 144 points; 33%
received a 2 Star Rating and 11% a 3 Star Rating.
Fitwel 2018 Best in Building HealthRecognition
Categories
Leadership
Industry Leading Company: Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Inc.
(NYSE:ARE)*
Alexandria has shown significant leadership in supporting human health
and well-being through real estate assets. After being named the first
Fitwel Champion in 2016, Alexandria certified six properties, five of
which have received a 3 Star Rating and one of which has the highest
score of any certified property to date. Alexandria continues to
innovate and set a high bar for its building operations and
developments, as demonstrated by its 2018 green bond and its stated goal
to achieve Fitwel certifications for all new ground-up development
projects.
"As a mission-driven company focused on advancing human health and
improving quality of life, Alexandria is grateful to CfAD and the CDC
for their leadership in creating Fitwel, and we are pleased that in turn
we have been able to support its transformative impact on the commercial
real estate industry since 2016," said Ari Frankel, assistant vice
president of sustainability & high performance buildings at Alexandria.
"Fitwel will play an integral part in driving our ability to meet our
industry-leading goal of achieving 50 healthy building certifications by
2025, and as part of our ongoing efforts to enable the success of our
tenants and enhance their ability to attract and retain top talent."
Industry Leader: Eleni Reed, Head of Sustainability — Americas,
Lendlease
Over the past eight years, Eleni Reed has played a critical role in
leading the industry in prioritizing health within buildings. As the
Head of Sustainability at Lendlease, Eleni leads the implementation of
health and well-being practices, both for employees and within the
firm's lines of business. In her prior role as the Chief Greening
Officer at the US General Services Administration, Eleni was
instrumental in driving healthy and productive workplaces across GSA's
real estate portfolio.
"As a leading global property and infrastructure solutions provider,
Lendlease believes that sustainable economic growth, vibrant and
resilient communities and a healthy planet and people are central to our
vision to create the best places," said Eleni Reed, head of
sustainability—Americas at Lendlease. "Fitwel and the Assembly
Guidelines are among the critical tools Lendlease is leveraging to set
new benchmarks that advance health and wellbeing at the building and
community scale in our developments."
Greatest Number of Certifications
All-Time: Kilroy Realty Corporation*
Professional Consultant (2018): Verdani Partners*
Real Estate Company/Manager (2018): Brandywine Realty Trust* and
Clarion Partners
Tenant (2018): Anthem, Inc.*
Greatest Impact
Most People Impacted: (1) Undisclosed Organization (2) Brandywine
Realty Trust (3) QuadReal Property Group*
Highest Square Footage: (1) Brandywine Realty Trust (2) Vornado
Realty Trust* (3) QuadReal Property Group
Highest Scores
Multifamily Residential: (1) The Tower Companies* – The Pearl;
Silver Spring, MD, USA (2) Clarion Partners – Montclair Residences;
Montclair, NJ, USA (3) AvalonBay Communities* – AVA NoMa; Washington,
D.C., USA
Single-Tenant Building: (1) Anthem – Lytle office; Indianapolis,
IN, USA (2) Undisclosed Financial Institution 3) U.S. Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention* – Atlanta, GA, USA
Multi-Tenant Base Building: (1) Menkes Developments Ltd* – One
York Street; Toronto, Canada (2) Cushman & Wakefield* – 125 Broad
Street; New York, NY, USA (3) QuadReal Property Group – South Core
Financial; Toronto, Canada
Multi-Tenant Whole Building: Vornado Realty Trust – theMART;
Chicago, IL, USA
Commercial Interior Space: (1) FOX Architects office –
Washington, D.C., USA (2) Bupa Headquarters – London, UK (3) HDR* office
– Arlington, VA, USA
*Starred companies designate participation in the Fitwel Champions
program, which is for companies committed to applying Fitwel at scale.
Fitwel and the Center for Active Design
Named one of Fast Company's 2017 Top 10 Most Innovative Companies in
Social Good, Fitwel
is the world's leading certification system that optimizes buildings to
support health. Generated by expert analysis of over 3,000 academic
research studies, Fitwel is implementing a vision for a healthier future
where all buildings and communities are enhanced to strengthen health
and wellbeing. Fitwel was created by the U.S. Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention, with the Center
for Active Design, a global not-for-profit organization selected as
the licensed operator of Fitwel in 2016, with the mandate to expand
Fitwel globally to the private sector.
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